The reindeer aren't chillaxing just yet ...

… and they won’t be settling down to any games or grog ‘til Santa delivers the last present in the wee hours of Christmas morning. This is because Santa Claus and his team of tiny reindeer are still travelling around the world and won’t be in North America for a long time yet according to NORAD (http://www.noradsanta.org/). He’s a busy guy, that Santa Claus. NORAD can tell you just how many presents he’s delivered since he began his long journey earlier today – Whew! And, he only gets to spend just 0.0000325419 seconds at each household around the globe. I’d say that’s very impressive for that jolly old elf.

And, I have some impressive stats for myself too. As to this old gal, she has already finished up her coveted 700-mile trek, though it was considerably less miles than Santa and his A-team will have accomplished. Your roving reporter marked 700 miles walked in 2015 on this chilly Thursday morning. I won’t give you my final tally until year end, just in case I can rack up a few more miles, if my tender tootsies don’t mind and Mother Nature continues to cooperate.

I woke up feeling very lucky since we were unscathed by the wicked winds that blew into Southeast Michigan yesterday, especially Canton Township where a tornado touched down. Across the U.S. people are picking up the pieces of their homes and vehicles … and their lives … on this day before Christmas.

On my walk this morning there was plenty of evidence that high winds had whisked into our neck of the woods. I passed several homes whose Christmas décor features multiple inflatables on their front lawn. One home is filled with Disney characters and most of those decorations were askew. I noted that Pluto’s oversized head was listing to the left (which might have just passed as a “head tilt”) and Mickey Mouse, wearing an oversized elf cap, was tipped all the way backward onto the lawn as if he was sleeping. As I strolled down Emmons Boulevard, many of the delicate white wire trees and reindeer had rolled across the front lawns, some even dragging their long electrical cords with them. The nutcracker soldiers, whose photo I featured on my December 22nd blog post, were face down in the muddy garden.

It could have been worse I guess, but everyone will need to scramble quickly so Santa isn’t disappointed in the decorations which will herald his arrival tonight. I, too, need to impress Santa, since my decorations are a little lame this year, so, I’m off now to get dinner done and over with and head to bed early, long before his anticipated arrival. Santa will find some cookies and strawberry milk and a few handfuls of carrots for the reindeer at the Schaub house.

There’s no harm in still believing, right?

Backward, turn backward, time in your flight; make me a child again … just for tonight. ~ Elizabeth Akers Allen

You can catch up on my blog posts before I started blogging at Patch in August 2013 by going here: http://lindaschaubblog.net/